Italy OKs Living Wills Amid Long-Running Euthanasia Debate

December 15, 2017

(ABC News) – Italy’s Senate gave final approval Thursday to a law allowing Italians to write living wills and refuse artificial nutrition and hydration, the latest step in the Roman Catholic nation’s long-running and agonizing debate over euthanasia and end-of-life issues. As soon as the 180-71 vote was tabulated, cheers erupted outside parliament among a small group of right-to-die activists who saw the bill as a victory after several high-profile euthanasia cases prompted criminal prosecutions.